Utility Tariff Analysis · Updated September 2026

Entergy Arkansas' Generating Arkansas Jobs Act Rider: What It Means for AI Data Centre Siting in Arkansas

All Entergy Arkansas customers share the rider; large-load agreements are individually negotiated and PSC-approved is funded partly through a new rider — just over half a cent per kWh — approved under the 2025 Generating Arkansas Jobs Act, letting Entergy Arkansas recover the cost of new generation facilities from ratepayers before construction completes. Individual large-load agreements, such as its pending AVAIO Digital contract, are separately negotiated and require Arkansas Public Service Commission approval.

Entergy Arkansas' Generating Arkansas Jobs Act Rider — AI data centre infrastructure

Entergy Arkansas' Generating Arkansas Jobs Act Rider

AR

Entergy Arkansas

Rider under the Generating Arkansas Jobs Act of 2025

Regulatory docket / filing reference

All Entergy Arkansas customers share the rider; large-load agreements are individually negotiated and PSC-approved

Who the tariff applies to

All Entergy Arkansas customers share the rider; large-load agreements are individually negotiated and PSC-approved is funded partly through a new rider — just over half a cent per kWh — approved under the 2025 Generating Arkansas Jobs Act, letting Entergy Arkansas recover the cost of new generation facilities from ratepayers before construction completes. Individual large-load agreements, such as its pending AVAIO Digital contract, are separately negotiated and require Arkansas Public Service Commission approval.

Also active in Arkansas: Entergy Arkansas is supporting a Google data centre project in West Memphis paired with a 600 MW solar array and 350 MW battery storage system, and a pending $6 billion AVAIO Digital campus in Little Rock (150 MW initially in 2027, growing toward 1,000 MW). Entergy projects $1.7 billion in savings for existing customers from the new data centre load overall, though state lawmakers have publicly pressed the utility on ratepayer protections.

Named Projects Already Underway

CustomerLocationDetails
GoogleWest Memphis, ARdata centre project paired with a 600 MW solar project and 350 MW battery storage system
AVAIO DigitalLittle Rock, AR$6 billion data centre project; Entergy to provide 150 MW in 2027, growing toward 1,000 MW

Figures compiled from the Edison Electric Institute's "Large Load Projects and Tariffs" (September 2026) member-company summary and public regulatory filings. Confirm current tariff terms directly with Entergy Arkansas and the relevant state public utility commission before relying on any figure for a capital decision.

Weighing Arkansas against another state or a Canadian province with a different rate and interconnection picture entirely? Run both sides of the comparison through our licensed AI data centre cost configurator — it applies each jurisdiction's actual power rate, tax treatment and large-load tariff rules to the same seven build configurations.

Model This State on Your Own Site

Every figure above comes from the same power-cost and tariff dataset behind the SCR AI Build Configurator — a licensed, embeddable widget that models seven data centre build configurations against all nine Canadian provinces and all 50 US states plus DC, returning capital expenditure by line item, energy cost, revenue by commercial structure, EBITDA and payback.

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Not ready for an annual licence? A one-time Site Screening Report ($950, one site) runs the same model for a single build without embedding anything.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Entergy Arkansas' Generating Arkansas Jobs Act Rider?

All Entergy Arkansas customers share the rider; large-load agreements are individually negotiated and PSC-approved is funded partly through a new rider — just over half a cent per kWh — approved under the 2025 Generating Arkansas Jobs Act, letting Entergy Arkansas recover the cost of new generation facilities from ratepayers before construction completes. Individual large-load agreements, such as its pending AVAIO Digital contract, are separately negotiated and require Arkansas Public Service Commission approval.

Why did Entergy Arkansas introduce this large-load structure?

To ensure the cost of new generation, transmission and distribution infrastructure built to serve very large customers, chiefly hyperscale data centres, is paid for by those customers rather than spread across the general rate base of residential and small commercial ratepayers.

What large data centre projects are already active in Arkansas?

Entergy Arkansas is supporting a Google data centre project in West Memphis paired with a 600 MW solar array and 350 MW battery storage system, and a pending $6 billion AVAIO Digital campus in Little Rock (150 MW initially in 2027, growing toward 1,000 MW). Entergy projects $1.7 billion in savings for existing customers from the new data centre load overall, though state lawmakers have publicly pressed the utility on ratepayer protections.

Does this tariff replace Arkansas's standard commercial and industrial rates?

No. Entergy Arkansas' Generating Arkansas Jobs Act Rider sits above Entergy Arkansas's standard commercial and industrial rate schedules and applies specifically to customers that meet or exceed the large-load threshold described above. Smaller commercial and industrial loads continue to be billed under existing rate schedules.

How can I model a Arkansas data centre build against this tariff and other states?

The SCR AI Build Configurator applies Arkansas's power cost, tax treatment and large-load tariff rules alongside all other US states and Canadian provinces, so a Arkansas scenario can be compared line-by-line against any alternative site.